UN report says Sudan violates Darfur sanctions

The Sudanese government continues to violate sanctions imposed by the Security Council over their actions in Darfur, according to a U.N. report.

The report, written by a panel of experts and seen by The Associated Press on Tuesday, found violations of the arms embargo, the use of cluster bombs by the Sudanese government and the illegal transfer of intrusion software with electronic intelligence capability among other things.

The panel also documented numerous human rights violations attributable to the government, the financing of armed groups within the country which act as proxy forces and possible violations and a travel ban and an asset freeze on militia leader Sheik Musa Hilal Abdallah Alnsiem.

Human Rights Watch’s Deputy U.N. Director Akshaya Kumar said the report demonstrated that the sanctions “now exist in name only.”

“While international attention to the atrocities in Darfur has waned, unfortunately the indiscriminate bombing, killings, and rapes have not,” Kumar added.

Darfur has been gripped by bloodshed since 2003, when rebels took up arms against the government in Khartoum, accusing it of discrimination and neglect. The U.N. estimates 300,000 people have died in the conflict and 2.7 million have fled their homes.

Sudan’s Omar al-Bashir, is wanted by the International Criminal Court for alleged atrocities in Darfur. The court issued an arrest warrant for al-Bashir in 2009 for crimes against humanity and war crimes and added genocide to the charges against him in 2010.